Mhm. >> Mhm. >> Mhm. >> Mhm. >> Good evening. It's Thursday, May 7th, 2026, and I'd like to welcome you to the meeting of the South London Board of Education, and to call the meeting to order. Sorry. This is fine. >> [laughter]
>> Please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. I I pledge I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with
liberty and justice for all. I'd like to read the statement of advanced notice. The New Jersey Open Public Meeting Act, NJSA 10:4-6, also known as the Sunshine Law, was enacted to ensure the right of the public to have advanced notice of and to attend
the meetings of public bodies at which any business affecting the interests is discussed or acted upon. The primary purpose is for board members to discuss and vote on board business. In accordance with the provision of this act, the board secretary has caused notice to this meeting 48 hours prior,
including date, time, and location to be posted in the South Brunswick Public Library and board office, filed with the township clerk, and communicated to the Home News and the Star-Ledger. It is also posted on the district website. Roll call, Mr. Palewski.
Ms. Laura Hernandez. Here. Ms. Deepa Karthik. Here. Ms. Alicia Khan. Here. Ms. Or Mr. Rajesh Krishna? Or Roger Krishna? Roger Krishna, absent. Mr. Mike Mitchell. Present. Mr. Barry Nathenson. Here. Mr. David Tell. Here. Dr. Smitha Raj. Here.
Mr. Rajesh Soni. We have a quorum. Uh I May I have a motion and a second to approve tonight's meeting agenda? >> So moved. >> Motion, Mr. Mitchell. Second, Ms. Ms. Khan had her hand up, Barry.
Be polite. Don't you pass you by. It's Alicia. >> [laughter] >> Okay, next up is the report of our student representative. Good evening, everyone. Let's start off with a few updates from the high school.
Our Peer Assistance Leaders presented Grease on April 30th, May 1st, and May 2nd. It was a very successful production and we had a lot of turnout. On May 4th, students celebrated our annual May the 4th Be With You Star Wars spirit day, bringing lots of school spirit and fun
throughout the building. Yesterday, May 6th, the SBHS Class of 2029 also hosted a successful Chipotle fundraiser. Student government elections took place today and the results are posted after school. Congratulations to everybody that won. Looking ahead, junior prom is coming up
on May 15th aboard the Cornucopia cruise ship in Perth Amboy. Our 22nd annual Powderpuff game will take place on May 20th with an incredible 320 students registered to participate. All proceeds from the event will support Crisis Response K9s, a
nonprofit organization that provides comfort and care to individuals affected by personal and community crises. We are excited to again partner with the South Brunswick Police Department for this event. Four South Brunswick police officers, including the high school's SRO Detective Biucka, will referee the game
this year. Moving on to athletics, our student athletes continue to achieve impressive success this spring season. The girls golf team completed the regular season as White Division co-champions with a 6-1 division record. The girls spring track and field team captured the Red
Division championship at East Brunswick High School on April 7th. At the GMC Relay Championships hosted at South Brunswick High School, the 4 by 1600 relay of Shrita Muthyala, Malak Oweda, Natasha Kenny, and Obi Talawani delivered a historical performance,
breaking the meet, school, and county records. Our flag football team currently holds a 6-3 record and has qualified for the playoffs for the first time in school history. The SBHS cricket team has also had a strong competitive spring season. We're proud to share that the team has
qualified for the spring cricket tournament playoffs, an important milestone that reflects their hard work. Thank you all for listening, and have an amazing rest of your evening. Thank you, Honey. Thank you so much. Next up is our Superintendent's Report, Dr. Bragen. And now go.
Thank you, Mrs. Adams. I appreciate that. Um May 4th to 8th, May 4th to May 8th, as you may know, is teacher and staff appreciation week. And if you've driven along Route 1 recently, you may have seen the billboards celebrating our outstanding teachers and staff. It's a small way to say big thank you
for all that you do. You truly make a difference every day. I invite our community to join me in recognizing and appreciating the incredible individuals who work in our schools. At this point, I'm just going to give them a round of applause for me, because I really appreciate all that they do.
We'd also have like to say a special thank you to all of our PTOs for making all of our staff with Stop It. And you may not be aware of that, but we sent some correspondence out. What does that mean? Um it's one of our partners with LightSpeed Stop It. It's a nationally recognized leader in school
safety and student well-being. And through this partnership, every member of our school community has access [clears throat] to the LightSpeed Stop It anonymous reporting app. It's a powerful, easy-to-use tool that helps prevent and quickly address bullying, violence, self-harm, and other
concerning behaviors. Together, we're seeking to create a safer and more supportive environment for all, and we encourage everyone to download that app and use it if you need to. Primary election day is June 2nd in 2026, and voting will be open from 5:00 a.m.
to 8:00 p.m. Because schools are in session, the South Brunswick Police Department will provide security patrols at all schools used as polling locations. Security personnel will also be stationed at each site to ensure public access is limited to designated voting areas
and vote designate voting areas only and does not extend inside school buildings. The polling locations in our school district are South Brunswick High School, Crossroads South, Brunswick Acres, Indian Fields, and Constable School.
I want to give a 2026-27 school budget adoption update. Um at tonight's meeting we're also adopting the 2026-27 school budget and I want to compliment all of our staff, especially our business administrator Mr. Polansky in the business office, for their diligent work
in preparing this budget with a minimal tax increase of 1.76% that is lower than the permitted 2% tax levy. And they have were able to do all this despite receiving a reduction in state aid. So, we'd like to say congratulations on a job well done and that'll be up for approval on tonight's
agenda. Um I have two more things. Health Center transition update. As we mentioned at our last board meeting, our health center partner, Family First Primary Physicians, has scheduled a meeting on May 19th, 2026, to introduce themselves to our community and provide
an opportunity for dialogue with our employees on topics of mutual concern. We look forward to these kickoff meetings which begin at 3:00 p.m. at Crossroads North Middle School. We will also send out additional reminders as the date approaches. As always, we remain fully committed to supporting the health and well-being of
our staff and look forward to the opportunities this new partnership may provide. And lastly for me, I have a redistricting update. Since presenting the redistricting plan at the April 23rd Board of Education meeting, individualized assignment letters have been sent to every family impacted by a
boundary change. All families with a child impacted by redistricting now have received direct communication from us regarding their child's assignment. This was completed ahead of our anticipated May 15th timeline to ensure families have ample time to prepare for September.
To further support this transition, we'll be hosting an in-person transition support session next Tuesday, May 12th at 6:00 p.m. at Crossroads South Middle School for impacted families. During the meeting, members of our central office staff and school-based leadership teams will review the transition plans and supports
put in place ahead of the '26-'27 school year. Families will also have an opportunity to ask questions and share feedback as we continue working together to support students throughout this process. As mentioned at our last board meeting, the redistricting page on our district website is now live
and includes copy comprehensive information for families. There you will find a high-resolution map, a street-by-street listing, a detailed detailed FAQ session, and additional resources related to the transition. Finally, a fully a full community update
was included in today's district-wide weekly news communication. We remain committed to making this transition as smooth and as supportive as possible for all students and families. And my last event is just to remind people of an upcoming event. Uh Super Night of Jazz is tomorrow night at
Crossroads Middle School South. We at starting at 6:00 p.m. where guests will enjoy inspiring student performances while savoring a delicious variety of soups served fresh bread followed by an assortment of delightful desserts. We hope you can attend. Thank you. Thank you.
Okay. Yes. Uh just to acknowledge uh this topic that's been an ask from many board members ever since I've been on the board. That's 5 years or more. So, Lisa Rogers,
previous board member, she was she has she had been pushing for it as well. So, I'd like to thank Dr. Bregan for introducing it finally. It's a very important important It's very important to have a reporting anonymous reporting structure. Agreed. So, thank you. Yeah, we're
really happy about that and we got a little bit of a a snippet on how that's going to get rolled out and we're very excited about it. So, thank you. I can't take credit for that. While the superintendent's responsible, Mr. Morales did all the work behind the scenes, our director of special services. So, we're grateful for his
efforts on that. Awesome. Thank you. Okay, next up I would like to bring Mr. Peter Barrella, the principal from our high school. All right, good evening, ladies and gentlemen. Tonight, I'm honored to represent our district's principals and assistant
principals as we recognize a group of volunteers who whose impact is felt each and every day in our buildings. We want to express our sincere appreciation to our PTO presidents and their outstanding service to our schools.
As a PTO president, your role may appear to center on organizing meetings, setting agendas, and sending out those timely reminder emails that we all depend on. What you truly provide goes far beyond that. You create meaningful opportunities for
students, foster a strong sense of community among families, and support our teachers and staff in ways that are often behind the scenes yet deeply impactful. Whether organizing events, raising funds to enhance programs, resources, and scholarships,
or simply being a steady and positive presence at school functions, your leadership plays a vital role in shaping the culture of our schools. You give your time generously, often while balancing careers, businesses, family responsibilities, and
countless other commitments. And more often than not, responding to emails at hours most people would prefer to avoid because you are the go-to parents in our community. You do all of this because you are you generally care for our students, our
staff, and our community. From a principal's perspective, I can say with confidence that our schools are stronger because of each of you. The partnership between our schools and our PTOs is not simply beneficial, it's essential.
When schools and families work together with a shared purpose, the impact on our students and staff is both powerful and lasting. Please know that your efforts do not go unnoticed. You are truly valued, appreciated, and respected.
On behalf of our administrators, our staff, our parent community, and most importantly, our students, thank you for your commitment, your partnership, and your leadership. At this time, we would like to present each of [clears throat] you with a small token of appreciation as a gesture of
our gratitude for all that you do, along with a certificate from the Board of Education acknowledging your service. I want to thank high school art teacher Norman Chow for photographing pieces of artwork from this year's district art show. He then framed those photographs to capture the beauty and showcase our
amazing students' talents. A thank you to Ms. Lourdes Zamana Louise, who produced the certificates of appreciation. I also want to thank and recognize the work of Tim Sweeney, a supervisor at the high school and middle school, who worked hard to coordinate these gifts
and simply made them happen. At this time, Board President Hernandez, please join me at the podium. I now ask all of our PTO presidents to line up along the wall in alpha order by school. I would like to first recognize Brooks
Crossing, Druti Chakshi, who could not be with us tonight, but let's congratulate her. All right, from Brunswick Acres, Michelle Pittman. Come on up. All right, from Cambridge, co-presidents, Romi Lee and Nilufer
Taffa Farash. Unfortunately, both of them cannot be here tonight. From Constable, Vanessa Goray and Deborah Drake. Unfortunately, Vanessa could not be with us, but I know you're accepting both, so thank you. >> Thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you.
All right, from Greenbrook, Lisa Browning. Unfortunately, she cannot be with us tonight. From Minute Man Fields, Michelle Ashman. >> [applause] >> From Monmouth Junction, Manasa Gangula. Thank you. Okay.
From Crossroads Middle School, Dipti Shukla Zavar, who could not be with us tonight. From South Brunswick High School, home of the Vikings. I just had to throw that in. Uh, Ena Betty and Deepika Chandola.
>> [applause] >> And lastly, the co-coordinators of the PTO Council, Deepa Goochandola and Zara Tariq. All right, let's have one more round of applause for our PTO presidents and coordinators. >> [applause] >> All right, as we wrap up our
presentation, our principals were excited to share a glimpse into the incredible impact our PTOs have made this year. Each principal contributed a few photos from the many PTO events that were hosted and supported. Moments that truly reflect their dedication to our schools.
A special thank you to Lisa Manganello, a library media specialist from our high school for bringing these memories together in a wonderful video that highlights their efforts. On behalf of our principals, assistant principals, and students, and the entire school community, we extend our sincere
gratitude to each of our PTO presidents and coordinators. Your commitment, time, and care make a lasting difference. Before I turn the mic over to Madam President Hernandez, please sit back, relax, and enjoy this short video celebration of your outstanding work.
>> [music] [music] [music] >> Yes. >> [music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [music]
[music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [clears throat] >> So, I have the pleasure of working with these ladies once a month. I get to meet with them and hear all the wonderful ideas that they have and how creative
they are. I have to say I'm a little jealous because I don't get this in my district where I work. [laughter] So, I'm a little jealous. Um, but I also look at you guys when we educate a child, it goes so beyond academics.
And when we bring them into our village, it goes so beyond academics. And you bring in that peace with the um, assemblies you bring us and the events that you bring us. And school
would not be school without those. So, on behalf of the board, thank you so much for your time, your devotion, and everything that you do. It is so appreciated. >> [applause] >> Public hearing. I hear you now. Yeah.
Mr. Palowsky and Dr. Braden. Yep. So, for this evening, everybody, our school budget, where on the agenda you'll find the uh adoption and approval of the 2026-2027 budget. At this time, none of those numbers have changed from
um our tentative budget. We're still at a 1.7% uh increase on the tax levy, which is beneath the 2% uh cap. And um we've met all of our expectations with regards to the board and moving forward with a with a streamlined budget for
2026-2027. That would conclude my presentation. Yep. Perfect. It's short and sweet. That's it. >> [laughter] >> That's awesome. We're very proud of them. We are very proud of them. We went in in the finance committee meeting, I don't know, a couple months ago, and they said, "What are our marching
orders?" And we said, "Do not raise these taxes. We don't know how you're going to do it. We don't know where you're going to get it from, but we raised them significantly 2 years in a row. We cannot do that again. So, find what you could find to bring us to 2%
um so we can have the kids will not lose anything, no courses, not none of that. And they came in below that. So, um we Yeah, that's right. Give her a gesture. Yeah. [applause] And and and that is not That was not an easy feat. And if you are reading the
newspapers or listening to the news, surrounding districts are getting slammed. They're getting slammed. I kind of want to call a couple superintendents and say, "Mhm, how you like it now? Because we had to do it for 2 years." But, we want to thank you. Dave's crew was
amazing. Dr. Breggin came in and I know that Jill and uh um Kim had a lot and Suzanne had so much to do with it. So, thank you so much that we were able to do that. So, our next order of business is we don't we didn't have any committee
meetings between last meeting and this meeting. Any liaison between boards that we have going on? All right. >> All right. So, Yes. Um well, what you see here is Mr. SBHS was a few weeks ago. Mr. SBHS.
Um so, I'm wearing this to represent them. Thank them for a great um great program that night. I wasn't there, but I I heard it was a great program and I really wanted to be there. I couldn't be there. So, but I appreciate them sharing this with me um
cuz I really wanted to be there that night. So, um with that Also, I was able to I was actually able to go to the chess-a-thon. Um which was on April 25th.
Uh the SBHS Chess Club hosted its culminating chess-a-thon event. Um it lasted from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The annex cafeteria was filled with um energy as 110 district students gather for a day of learning, fun, and
competition. With participants from every South Brunswick school, the event truly brought together the full K-12 community. Uh the morning featured a variety of activities including puzzles, an escape
room, arena play, life-size chess, and a simultaneous exhibition. While previous years featured a guest grandmaster, this year welcomed South Brunswick's own national master, sixth grader Santosh. Hopefully I'm saying the last name correctly, Ayappan of
Crossroads North. Santosh delivered an incredible performance going a perfect 50 and 0 in the simul. That's amazing. Um this year's chess-a-thon was the largest to was the largest today and served as a fitting conclusion to a successful
season. The SBHS Chess Club looks forward to continuing to grow the event in the years ahead. The future is bright for our South Brunswick Chess program, our club. Um I'm going to share there's other information here that I'm going to share with the board um
concerning their their success this year. Um the the events that they have entered they actually won two and placed second in one and placed third in the other. But I'll get that information to the board um tonight. I'll get it out to you.
So thank you. That's awesome. Great. Anybody else? Yeah, I just have a quick um quick report to share with the with the board. I I went for Grease, the show at the high school. Yes, yes I did. It was
really really wonderful. The production was top class and the high school students were so good. They blew my mind. The orchestra was beautiful. Um and the singers were just fabulous and I mean I recall Grease uh Grease from my
uh you know my my days. I'm dating myself, but uh you know it was it was a wonderful production. Um and I wanted to provide that update as a liaison to the high school that I had been there and I want to extend my congratulations to the administration that was part of the production as well
as to the orchestra. They They was They were fabulous, absolutely fabulous. Oh, so exciting. Yeah, so we have we have to give them a big [applause] clap. So Deepa [snorts] went from the oldest kids, I'm going to go to the youngest kids." Um many of us on the board here
was able to attend the Preschool Palooza in the Rio Yano. So oh, it really was so cute. Um it was held at the community center. It was not the best of days, but it did not stop those little babies from coming
out and seeing bubbles and seeing magic and getting balloons and just having so much fun. Um our preschool staff administration did an amazing job and they're over there pulling it together.
Uh so it was myself, Dr. Bregan, Devon was there, Mike was there. Is that Is that it? Oh, and Roger. Oh, Roger was there with this big truck that we had to climb inside of. It's a big gigantic truck. So, it was
amazing. It was so good. It was only their second year and it was packed and it was packed on a yucky day. Like it was kind of overcast and people were there and yesterday they had How cute is this? Their little art show. Like the little three- and four-year-olds little art show. How cute
is that? So, um yeah, kudos to our preschool. You guys are rocking it over there. So, nice job. Keep it up. Okay, back. Real quick. Uh a week or so ago I had the opportunity to go to Senior
United for softball at the We were at Rowland. Uh and the softball team 10-run ruled North Brunswick and they played like unreal and they're having a really good
season. Uh and they've had some tough injuries and such, but they're really And baseball's coming up. Uh I'll send a note to the entire board if you want to come. It's all star bowling and the baseball team's record is way
above what happened last year. It's amazing what happens when you bring in a new Hall of Fame coach. So, you know, he's doing amazing job. Hey. Smita. Just a quick update on the cricket club. They have had a good
season so far. Last season they were the runners-up. This season they made the playoff as the mayor just said. Tomorrow is their first playoff. So, wishing them luck. Give them what? Yeah.
Give us the details that you have it. If you go, give us the details afterwards if you can he say. Yeah, okay. Um old business we have none at this time. New business we have none at this time. Next up is public comment on agenda items only. We'll two times for
our public comment but this one is just for agenda items only. The Board of Education recognizes the value of public comment on educational issues and the importance of allowing members of the public to express themselves on school matters of community interest. Complete copies of
policy 0167 which governs this portion of the meetings are available to the public at the auditorium entrance, online, or by contacting the Board office. To permit the fair and orderly expression of comments, we ask that the participants be recognized by the
presiding officer and preface comments by announcing his or her name, place of residence, and group affiliation if applicable, and by completing the sign-in sheet. Please print legibly or we may be unable to document your name for the permanent record.
Each statement made by a participant shall be limited to 3 minutes. No participant may speak more than once on the same topic. Mr. Palowsky will indicate when you You 15 seconds remaining. All statements should be directed to
directed to the presiding officer. No participant may address or question board members. No discussion between a participant and respondent shall exceed the 3-minute time limit with a total time limit of 1 hour. It is our plan to listen to each member
of the public. Once all questions and comments from all members of the public are made, the Board of Education may respond or respond via email in the most timely and [snorts] efficient manner. All questions and comments made will be noted. Please note
differences of opinions are welcome. Disrespect is not. Mr. Palowski, has anyone pre-registered? We have no pre-registrations at this time. Okay, but we we'll get there. You didn't pre-register, but I'll call for anybody in the audience.
So, are Is there anybody in the audience that would like to come up and speak? Please find your way to the podium and please make sure you sign in. Oh, okay. Is there a sign-in sheet? Okay. Okay. Hi, my name is Jennifer Ruggero and I live on Georges Road and I have a son named Milo Ruggero that goes
to Acres. Uh Milo is in second grade. He has autism. I'm an ADA mom and Milo has been in four different schools since we've been here, not including summer camp. So, Milo has been in and out of a bus five times with five different people at the end, five different schools, five
different nurses or support. I don't have any consistency right now for my son and I would like to ask for that. That's my 3 minutes. Oh, wait. And um another thing. Um out of the four schools that my son two of the teachers were not asked to
come back. And again, my son is in second grade. Thank you. I have another parent who also Oh, sure. Come on up. Absolutely. Hi, my name is Daville and I live in Monmouth Junction and my son goes in Brunswick Acres.
He started his journey of education in South Brunswick district from kindergarten. It's been 3 years and he has been into the district and it's three different schools, three different teachers, three set of different peers. So, I would also request for the consistency for the
coming year and the consistency in the form of professionals from in the form of teachers, in the form of peers for the next year. So, that's what my request is. And yeah, we never got a letter about change of schools for the next year like
I'll reach out to you. Reach out to Dr. Brigden. Email Dr. Brigden. My mistake is this is not an agenda item. This was the second comments. So, anybody other than that with the public, that's okay. That's all right, no big deal.
Anybody else? Agenda items only. Okay. Consent agenda review, Mr. Palowsky. We have a pretty concise consent agenda this evening. We have a bills list, we're accepting some donations and approving some funds for the non-public
chapter 193 funds and also our preschool education aid. We have an authorization to submit a grant for $14,000 to optimal comprehensive universal screener cohort. We're also
approving a connect for freedom curriculum in state. So, we also were recording some bids and awards for some vendors for transportation. We're also rejecting some for some missing documentation.
We are approving our final budget adoption um on 1/8 we have a general fund 166 million, we have special revenue fund of 11 million, we have a debt service fund of 1.8 million and a total budget of 180 million.
Our local tax levy is 144 million and our debt service fund is 1.8 million for a total budget on the taxpayer of 145 million. Those are obviously rounded up numbers, but we have a 1.7% 1.76% increase on our tax levy.
Um and that's what we're approving on our uh final budget adoption in 1.8. We're approving a resolution uh excuse me uh resolution to purchase over the bid limit and award a contract for some door work that's happening in Deans and Dayton.
Uh we're going to have a conversation more about this uh with our operations committee on Tuesday, but we're using uh some grant money to uh develop and create some secured uh environments vestibules at both Deans and Dayton uh schools for our preschool
program all paid for through our preschool grant. We're on 1/10 we're approving harassment uh HIB bullying reports. Some student field trips. And then we have our personnel. And that's your consent agenda this
evening. Okay. Any questions? Roll call Mr. Plousky. Taking back no questions. Here we go. Ms. Laura Hernandez. Yes. Ms. Deepa Karthik. [clears throat] >> Yes. Ms. Alicia Khan. Yes. Mr. Roger Krishna is absent.
Mr. Mike Mitchell. Yes. Mr. Barry Nathanson. Yes. Mr. Devon Patel. Aye. Dr. Smitha Raj. Yes. Mr. Rajesh Sony. Approved. Motion carries. Okay. Consent agenda passes. Okay, awesome. So next up we have
a public comment now is on any topic. On any topic you want. Um please keep in mind the guidelines that I read uh for the last time. So, we don't do have anybody registered for that. No, okay. Uh anybody who'd like to come up and make a comment on anything?
Come on up. >> [snorts] >> You need 50 minutes of time. Hello, my name is Pamela Knapp. I have two sons that um that go to Constable School. I was just wondering what the map is before the changes.
So, I can do my own homework on this. Where can I find that? Both on the website. If not, we can email me and I'll get you that. I thought they were both on the website. The before and after map should be there. The after should be on the website already. I saw the after, but not the before. Okay.
If you email me, I'll get that to you. Get it to you. >> so just respond to my my email. Okay. Thank you. All right, thank you. Anybody else? All right. Well, we are going to end that portion of the board meeting.
Please note that the next scheduled board meeting is set for Thursday, May 21st, 2026 at 7:00 here in Crossroads North. May I have a motion to adjourn? I remembered. I'm so proud of myself just so you know that,
cuz I never remember that. Dr. Raj, second Mr. Nathanson. All in favor? Aye. Aye. Goodnight, South Brunswick.